an otherwise transparent tail. While giving the impression of a sword it turns out to just be good coloring. Females will spend their entire lives with rather unexciting coloring. Depending on their environments, females will range from a pale silver to a dull, dark gold, but have the ability to change their coloring somewhat if they are moved from a light environment to a dark one (or vice versa). When full-grown, adult females can be as much as twice the size of males. The birth process can be stressful for the females, and some will not survive long after large births. The ones that do not do well will often turn grey and will start to "wither away" until they eventually die, due to the stress. Etymology The specific name of Poecilia wingei honours the Danish biologist Øjvind Winge (1886–1964) who worked extensively on the genetics of Poecilia including this species. References Further reading Dr. F. N. Poeser & M. Kempkes report how and where they found Poecilia wingei, with pictures of male fishes from the Campoma and from the Carúpano region and of biotopes. External links Endlers Detailed Care, Strain, Class & Grade information Poecilia wingei at Fishprofiles.com wingei Fish described in 2005 Fish of Venezuela Endemic fauna of Venezuela Live-bearing fish Ovoviviparous fish Taxa named by Isaäc J. H. Isbrücker